Movie Review - Not Fade Away

Not Fade Away (2012)

Starring John Magaro, Bella Heathcote, Jack Huston, Will Brill, Dominque McElligott, Molly Price, and James Gandolfini

Directed by David Chase

Not that I watched more than a season-and-a-half of The Sopranos, but David Chase should probably stick to tv rather than venture out into the cinematic landscape if Not Fade Away is any indication of his movie ambitions.  Everything about the film -- with the exception of the fantastic collection of sixties music -- feels utterly generic.  It doesn't help that Chase -- who also wrote the film -- adds in side stories that fail to go anywhere (as if he were setting up scenes for next week's episode or something).  I'm at a loss as to how this film is rated so highly on RottenTomatoes.  I'm apparently definitely going against the grain on this one.

When teenage Douglas (John Magaro) hears The Rolling Stones on the radio, he immediately knows that he wants to be in a band.  With his buddies, he achieves that dream, performing at local parties, but longs for something more.

And that's it.  There's a love interest (Bella Heathcote, a dead ringer for Sally in The Nightmare Before Christmas), a father and mother (James Gandolfini and an awful Molly Price) who don't understand his teenage angst, and bandmates who turn on each other in typical and expected fashion.

Nothing you haven't seen before here.  Go ahead and move on...

The RyMickey Rating:  D+